Vaughn McClure at the Chicago Tribune writes about Bears safety Chris Harris. Harris sustained a hip injury and is questionable for Sunday’s game. Questionable in that he has a decision to make:
“‘I have to be smart about it,’ Harris said Friday. ‘If gutting it out means I can’t get over the top of Donald Driver on a deep route, then no.
“‘I’m going to go out there and go. If it happens to bother me to a significant extent, then absolutely, I definitely would come out the game. I wouldn’t try to play tough guy for my on gratification to say I played in the NFC championship game.”’
Most fans understand that safety is probably the toughest position to play in the cover two defense. Most teams attack the position by giving the safety a choice of two receivers to cover. Its critical that the right decisions be quickly made by the man during any given play. You could argue that Harris’ veteran presence will be more important than athletic ability. However, as Harris points out, that needs to be balanced with the speed needed to get over the top to help out the corner on the outside.
Its not an easy balance to strike. What Harris decides to do will be crucial to the Bears success. Here’s hoping he makes all the right moves.